1. Field of the Invention
The invention is concerned with a device, kit and method for selecting color cosmetics optimized to a customer""s skin shade.
2. The Related Art
Selection of the optimal color shade is often a customer""s chief concern in purchasing a cosmetic facial product. A number of companies in the industry have sought to render easier the selection process. Clinique and Clarion have installed computers at sales counters for use by the customer. Information on color shade, oiliness and other properties of a customer""s skin are punched into the computer which then determines the company""s most closely matching product.
Another point of sale technique has been that of custom blending. Two major companies, Prescriptives (division of Estee Lauder) and Visage (division of Revlon) begin a sale by manually evaluating a subject""s skin color. The salesperson then adjusts existing finished foundations so as to match the evaluated skin color. Unfortunately, there are many disadvantages in the manual evaluation of color. The most obvious of these is that too much time is required for a match. Often there is a poor skin match, reproducibility is a problem and extensive training is required of the salesperson.
German Patent 41 10 299 C1 (Erdtmann) discloses a facial sensor to evaluate skin which is connected to an automatic cosmetic dispensing device for blending selected additives into a cosmetic base.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,622,692 (Rigg et al.) reports on a method and apparatus for customizing a facial foundation product at the point of sale to a customer. A skin analyzer is applied to a customer""s face for reading skin properties. A programmable device then receives the reading and correlates same with an optimal formula. A formulation machine then prepares a facial foundation product based upon instructions received about the optimal formula. Chemicals are dosed and blended together from a series of dispensers each containing a monochromatic color composition. The optimal formula may be altered through customer preferences by manual alteration. A problem with this method is the expense and relative non-portability of the apparatus as well as the large, cumbersome monitor necessary to print out measured skin information.
Related technology with similar problems are reported in U.S. Pat. No. 5,785,960 (Rigg et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,945,112 (Flynn et al.).
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a device, kit and related method capable of quickly analyzing skin color and converting the analysis to identify a particular color shade optimal for the customer.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a device, kit and related method for identifying a color shade most suitable for a customer, particularly for foundation products, and based on such information to recommend complementary color cosmetics which are not foundations.
These and other objects of the present invention will become more readily apparent through consideration of the following summary, drawing and detailed description which follow.
A device is provided for recommending a cosmetic product color matched to a customer""s skin including:
(i) a housing for the device of a size sufficiently small to be held in one hand;
(ii) a spectrophotometer/colorimeter mounted within the housing capable of measuring skin color values of lightness, redness and yellowness respectively denoted by L, a and b units;
(iii) a computer program lodged within the housing for receiving the measured skin color values and correlating them to products having a matching color; and
(iv) a display screen fitted on an outer wall of the housing for displaying an image identifying the matching color, the image being selected from the group consisting of L, a and b units, alphanumerics, icons, words and combinations thereof.
Optionally, a program may be provided within the housing to receive the measured L, a and b values and recommend a color compatible shade of a further cosmetic product other than foundation selected from the group consisting of lipstick, eye liner, blush, eye shadow, lip liner, browliner, mascara, nail polish and combinations thereof.
Ordinarily the device may have a length ranging anywhere from about 5 cm to about 30 cm and a width ranging from about 2 cm to about 15 cm. Weight of the device may range from about 100 gm to about 5 kg, preferably from about 500 gm to about 2 kg.
Furthermore, a kit is provided for selecting and supplying facial cosmetic products color matched to a customer""s skin which includes:
(A) a display platform upon which are arranged a plurality of facial foundation products, at least two of the products having a different color shade;
(B) a directory having a compilation of information correlating facial foundation colors to complementary shades of at least one second cosmetic product selected from the group consisting of lipstick, eye liner, blush, eye shadow, lip liner, browliner, mascara, nail polish and combinations thereof; and
(C) a device for recommending to a customer an optimum facial foundation product suitable for that customer, the device including.
(i) a housing for the device of a size sufficiently small to be held in one hand;
(ii) a spectrophotometer/colorimeter mounted within the housing capable of measuring skin color values of lightness, redness and yellowness respectively denoted by L, a and b units;
(iii) a computer program lodged within the housing for receiving the measured skin color values and correlating them to products having a matching color; and
(iv) a display screen fitted on an outer wall of the housing for displaying an image identifying the matching color, the image being selected from the group consisting of L, a and b units, alphanumerics, icons, words and combinations thereof.
Still further the invention provides a method for recommending a facial foundation product color matched to a customer""s skin, the method including:
(A) providing a device for measuring the customer""s facial skin color, the device including:
(i) a housing for the device of a size sufficiently small to be held in one hand;
(ii) a spectrophotometer/colorimeter mounted within the housing capable of measuring skin color values of lightness, redness and yellowness respectively denoted by L, a and b units;
(iii) a computer program lodged within the housing for receiving the measured skin color values and correlating them to products having a matching color; and
(iv) a display screen fitted on an outer wall of the housing for displaying an image identifying the matching color, the image being selected from the group consisting of L, a and b units, alphanumerics, icons, words and combinations thereof;
(B) measuring with the device a customer""s skin coloration with the spectrophotometer/colorimeter to obtain values of lightness, redness and yellowness respectively denoted by L, a and b units;
(C) identifying through the computer program stored within the housing a matching color facial foundation product based upon the measured spectrophotometer/colorimeter values; and
(D) displaying the identified facial foundation product on the screen of the device.